November 26th, 2015
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Update from Jeff Plescia: The coordinates of the newly found impact site are 1.922N, 334.38E, and the elevation is about –1100 m with respect to the datum. The position is about 31 km from the position determined by the seismic experiments and about 10 km from where the extrapolated tracking data suggested. Understanding the actual […]
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NASA’s Curiosity rover on Mars drove some 92 feet (28 meters) on Sol 1174 and is now parked in front of a beautiful sand sheet and sand dune! That’s the word from Lauren Edgar, a research geologist at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center in Flagstaff, Arizona and a member of the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) […]
The voyage of Europe’s ExoMars 2016 spacecraft is moving closer to the Red Planet – departing the clean rooms of Thales Alenia Space in Cannes for shipment to Baikonur, Kazakhstan. This ExoMars spacecraft is headed for a March 2016 liftoff atop a Proton booster. ExoMars is a joint endeavor between the European Space Agency (ESA) […]
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover has driven toward the Bagnold Dunes. The main focus of the plan is to monitor the dunes and document the bedrock along the way, explains Lauren Edgar of the USGS Astrogeology Science Center in Flagstaff, Arizona. Using the rover’s Mastcam observations are to be made of two of the dunes, as […]
Blue Origin has announced a “historic” rocket landing. Its New Shepard space vehicle successfully flew to space November 23, reaching a planned test altitude of 329,839 feet (100.5 kilometers) before executing a landing back at the company’s spaceport in West Texas. Chief rocketeer, Jeff Bezos, founder of Blue Origin and Amazon.com leader, proclaimed that Blue […]
Last week on Mars, NASA’s Curiosity rover has been wheeling ever-closer to the Bagnold Dunes – characterizing the bedrock and sand along the way. Lauren Edgar of the USGS Astrogeology Science Center in Flagstaff, Arizona reports that the Bagnold Dunes “are tantalizingly close.” On Sol 1167, Curiosity drove 128 feet (39 meters) “and the dunes […]
What are the latest innovations in space technology, the prospects for a human mission to Mars, and the importance of sustaining American leadership in space exploration? The Washington, D.C.-based Council on Foreign Relations held on November 19 a discussion on the future of space under their Emerging Technology Series The Emerging Technology series explores […]
The United Launch Alliance (ULA) announced today a new CubeSat rideshare program that offers universities the chance to compete for free CubeSat rides on future launches. In a ULA announcement today: “ULA will offer universities the chance to compete for at least six CubeSat launch slots on two Atlas V missions, with a goal to […]
Mars scientists and engineers have begun mulling over the ideal location for establishing a human outpost on the Red Planet. That best site would not only be of high scientific value — enabling the search for life on that planet, for example — but is also being eyed for local resources to help sustain […]
The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC) released today its 2015 annual report to Congress. The 2015 report provides information on and analysis of developments in the U.S.-China security dynamic, U.S.-China bilateral trade and economic relations, and China’s evolving bilateral relationships with other nations. Within the report, a Section 2 delves into China’s space […]
